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County wants to revise permitting, inspection process

Chatham County is looking to tweak its permitting and inspection process, a system developers say is inefficient and costly.

"We are finding an independent source that can say, 'This is what you are doing right and this is what you are doing wrong,' " said Assistant County Manager Pat Monahan. "It's not a shortcut by any means, but a way to streamline the process."

According to a county request for proposals issued June 9, there have been concerns the inspection and permitting processes are slow and complicated.

Comments from the development community have expressed frustration that the processes are needlessly inefficient and costly in terms of both time and money.

Coordination problems among county planners, engineers and inspectors can sometimes lead to delays, Monahan said.

One result of the redesign might be to have a central ombudsman track the process between the separate departments.

"Someone who could see that this permit went in this date or that this one is an aberration - it's taken three weeks," Monahan said. "That may be one of the outcomes."

Bill Hubbard, president and CEO of the Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce, said he has been hearing an unusual amount of concern from developers, including complaints about the time it takes to get permits and certain building requirements.

One developer failed to get a temporary certificate of occupancy for a home he was building so he could turn on the air conditioning, without which he could not install the wood floorboards, which warp in the heat, Hubbard said.

Some developers just get lost in the bureaucracy.

"It is difficult to find where you are in the pecking order," Hubbard said. "If you have to make a change, do you go to the beginning of the line or the middle?"

Hubbard said all the blame does not lie with the county or city. Petitioners often play a part in complications.

"It's not about trying to make a bad guy," he said. "It's about trying to improve the system for everybody."

Chamber members as well as Savannah Economic Development Authority representatives created a committee more than a year ago to work toward addressing the concerns, which are aimed at both the city and county processes.

They have raised questions about staffing, pay, technology and communication. The county has participated in some of the dialogue, but up to now, the committee has mostly been working with Savannah officials, Hubbard said.

Hubbard is glad the county has freed up some time to further work on the issue.

"Ultimately, the only way the city and county will grow is through expansions," he said. "If you make it hard for people to do it then ultimately they go somewhere else."

Companies interested in developing a plan are being asked to submit proposals by Wednesday.